Eat, drink, man, God
Noctur Visio
Food is a never ending source of pleasure, entertainment, gift-giving and fellowship. Inviting someone to eat with us is to open ourselves to a friendship. As an Asian I've noticed we're especially fond of taking pictures of people sitting around dinner tables more often than most other cultures. (Do you recall any non-Asians pics of themselves eating except at wedding banquets or business functions?!) Looking at such pictures recalls memories of people we've all shared good times with.
However, these so-called "restaurant pictures" can tell an interesting story: they reveal who our circle of friends and who are not. Think about this for a second: if you're sitting down, eating and reading this, who do you eat with? Most likely those we feel most comfortable with – our friends. However, when was the last time some of us invited a stranger to eat with us, much less someone we seldom talked with? If it's been a long time since we've done so, why is that? Maybe some of enjoy eating our favorite food in the present moment to not want to spoil it with bad company. Or possibly, some of us feel uncomfortable eating with someone we don't know well enough (they're too old/uncool/serious/etc.) and inviting them to eat with us would be too awkward.
If that's the case, I hope for some of us that it's not too late to change. You see, we all have a future invitation to eat with Jesus at his table in heaven someday. In the beginning we were strangers but God invited us to eat at his table (Matt 22:9-10). If any of us have a personal relationship with Jesus and know him through the work he did on the cross, Jesus tell us that we "may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom" (Luke 22:30). That's pretty amazing if we stop to think about it. Did you know that a lot of what Jesus did for us on the cross could be summed up in food and dining terms? In John 4:34, Jesus says "My food is to do the will of him (the Father) who sent me and to complete his work." That work is to die on the cross as a sacrificial offering for the sins of mankind. If we accept his sacrifice and gift, then "those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life." (John 4:14) Not only that but if we truly want to experience the abundant life of God that Jesus gives (John 10:10), "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled (Matt 5:6)! This is a promise from God we can claim.
So, the next time, we're hungry and thirsty and sit down to eat, how about inviting someone you've hardly talked to in church, school or work? Your very act of inviting a stranger to eat with you is the same thing that God did for you when you were a stranger. Maybe in doing this together, we can all truly better share with others our top food recommendation for the day while eating together: "O taste and see that the LORD is good (Psalm 34:8).
Now, that's something to give thanks and say grace over. Bon appetit.
Food is a never ending source of pleasure, entertainment, gift-giving and fellowship. Inviting someone to eat with us is to open ourselves to a friendship. As an Asian I've noticed we're especially fond of taking pictures of people sitting around dinner tables more often than most other cultures. (Do you recall any non-Asians pics of themselves eating except at wedding banquets or business functions?!) Looking at such pictures recalls memories of people we've all shared good times with.
However, these so-called "restaurant pictures" can tell an interesting story: they reveal who our circle of friends and who are not. Think about this for a second: if you're sitting down, eating and reading this, who do you eat with? Most likely those we feel most comfortable with – our friends. However, when was the last time some of us invited a stranger to eat with us, much less someone we seldom talked with? If it's been a long time since we've done so, why is that? Maybe some of enjoy eating our favorite food in the present moment to not want to spoil it with bad company. Or possibly, some of us feel uncomfortable eating with someone we don't know well enough (they're too old/uncool/serious/etc.) and inviting them to eat with us would be too awkward.
If that's the case, I hope for some of us that it's not too late to change. You see, we all have a future invitation to eat with Jesus at his table in heaven someday. In the beginning we were strangers but God invited us to eat at his table (Matt 22:9-10). If any of us have a personal relationship with Jesus and know him through the work he did on the cross, Jesus tell us that we "may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom" (Luke 22:30). That's pretty amazing if we stop to think about it. Did you know that a lot of what Jesus did for us on the cross could be summed up in food and dining terms? In John 4:34, Jesus says "My food is to do the will of him (the Father) who sent me and to complete his work." That work is to die on the cross as a sacrificial offering for the sins of mankind. If we accept his sacrifice and gift, then "those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life." (John 4:14) Not only that but if we truly want to experience the abundant life of God that Jesus gives (John 10:10), "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled (Matt 5:6)! This is a promise from God we can claim.
So, the next time, we're hungry and thirsty and sit down to eat, how about inviting someone you've hardly talked to in church, school or work? Your very act of inviting a stranger to eat with you is the same thing that God did for you when you were a stranger. Maybe in doing this together, we can all truly better share with others our top food recommendation for the day while eating together: "O taste and see that the LORD is good (Psalm 34:8).
Now, that's something to give thanks and say grace over. Bon appetit.
posted by Beng Cher at 10:10 PM
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